The Rum Diary

[Jim Cotter]

What type of rum did gonzo journalist Hunter S Thompson drink when he penned the Rum Diaries?

[Ed Hamilton]

I don't have a copy of the Rum Diaries in front of me, I left mine on my boat in the islands, but as for the type of rum gonzo himself would have been drinking in 1950s San Juan, I can say with a high degree of confidence that it would have been white rum. In the 50s, Puerto Rico was working hard to improve the image of their rums from a rough coarse spirit to a lighter more acceptable drink.

Even today the drink of Puerto Rico is white rum, with Coke - as gonzo was probably consuming, mixed with fruit juice, or just shots chased with whatever is in your left hand - the an even more probable scenario.